Shift
by Lunaria Persephone
Summary: Sesshoumaru is a human warlord playing a dangerous game of war. When he is wounded in battle, his life takes a whole drastic turn when the being that he despises the most saves his life. AU
1. A New Era of War

Author's note_: I do not own Inuyasha or any of its characters_

**Chapter 1:**

**A New Era of War**

Combing his fingers through his long strands of black, silky hair, an irritated Sesshoumaru resisted the urge to sigh. Usually, the affairs of the Court of the Western Provinces were not worthy of his attention, but recently, things had taken a drastic turn away from its constant monotony. As the days kept going, rumors of war were spreading like wildfire, something that he was quite looking forward, but at the same time irritated over the reasons behind said rumors of war.

Standing in the balcony of his private study room, he began observing a group of soldiers that were currently training in the center courtyard of the Shiro. Closing his hazel eyes, he raised his hand to the bridge of his face and rubbed the bridge of his nose, choosing to ignore the headache was soon to come and preferring to meditate in the issue that was currently beginning to irritate him.

It was nothing new; in fact, Sesshoumaru was quite looking forward to a confrontation between the lands. As a teenager, he had been known for his cunning tactics of war, and because he has mastered great skills with several weapons, in fact, his Father had given him the position of Captain of two of his troops at the tender age of thirteen and then had promoted him to the position of Commandant when he was sixteen years old because of his abilities both in the battlefield and in the strategies room. But on the years before his death, his father had made sure that peace had settled throughout his lands before passing them to his heir and only son.

Ever since then, life became boring to Sesshoumaru. Everyday was the same monotonous day: he would wake up before dawn and be catered to his many needs by his servants, and then he would tend to the affairs of the Court for most of the day, before retiring himself to one of the many training dojos inside the shiro for the rest of the day. But now that a new confrontation was looming upon the West, Sesshoumaru could barely hide his silent excitement over the thought of a new war.

Sure, having peace was a welcoming feeling, but Sesshoumaru wanted some action in his life. He wanted to return to the days when he would stay hour in front of a map, strategizing on how to place his soldiers for an efficient attack on his enemy. He longed for the feeling of his sword penetrating through the skin and bones of his enemy.

Remembering stories from his childhood, stories about times when his ancestors battled ferociously against demons centuries ago, of times when battles were the main event of everyday, humans and demons in a thunderous clash against each other for dominance over each other, he felt that, even though those glorious days of swords and blood were far long gone, a war between humans would be the most recent event that would give testimony of the glory and power of the West, and would reestablish the West as the most powerful province in all the land.

The glorious wars of the past between demons and humans had ended centuries ago, and at the end of it all, his ancestors had surfaced victorious and crowned with the glory amongst the human provinces because of their bravery and because they had battled against demons and survived. They had ended because as the years progressed, the demons realized that petting themselves against the humans had no end, because, even though they surpassed humans in strength, the humans always surpassed the demons in numbers because of their ability to reproduce quickly and because the humans considered that because of the small density of the demon population and their lack of social organizations, demons were only disgusting barbarians that would fade with time. Since then humans and demons had been in a silent truce; as long as demons don't meddle in the human's affairs and the humans don't meddle in the demon's affairs, everything would be at peace.

A knock on the frame of the shoji screen brought him out of his reverie. Without turning around or even bothering to open his eyes, Sesshoumaru commanded the servant to enter.

As the shoji screen opened, a short old green demon entered. One of the few demon servants in the main palace of the Western Provinces, Jacken came inside, carrying in his small wrinkly hands a scroll. Once he was at the doors leading to the balcony, Jacken bowed low, his forehead touching the floor, before addressing his lord.

"My lord", the toad demon replied, "A message from the Lord of the South has arrived."

"And?" Sesshoumaru replied with an emotionless voice, still without turning to acknowledge his bowing retainer.

"He says that if the West does not relinquish its hold on the southwestern forest, the South will take it by force."

This time, Sesshoumaru didn't bother to hide his irritation. Turning around abruptly, sending his long black tresses floating in the air around him and walking until he was in front of Jacken, Sesshoumaru finally settled his piercing cold stare on his retainer.

The South had been trying to negotiate ownership over the southwestern forest since his grandfather's time. The vast forest was known for its fertile soil and great abundance of vegetation and wildlife. Not only because of its many natural resources but also because it was the only way to reach the fishing and merchant ports of the west, a great source of commerce, income and trade that had been under the Western Lands for centuries. It was indeed a "gold mine" that was in part responsible for a great amount of the wealth of the West, and the South wanted to make it its own.

Lifting the corners of his mouth into a sadistic smirk, Sesshoumaru replied, "Very well, prepare the battalions. If the South wants to engage on war games, the West will not disappoint."


	2. War Games

Author's note: I still do not own Inuyasha or any of its characters

~Thanks to all who reviewed… I really appreciate it

**Chapter Two:**

**War Games**

A game, this is what it was for him. War was the greatest and most challenging game that a Lord could play. It required countless hours of preparation, tactical strategies that would crumble the enemy's offence effectively and quickly as well.

For two nights he had been locked inside his private study room, maps all over the place, putting the final touches in his plans to push the Southern army out of his lands.

It was almost the end of spring when the final documents that declared that the South and the West were at war were officially signed. But Sesshoumaru had not wasted even a minute and since that day when the message of the South had arrived, he had commanded his generals to intensify the training of the soldiers of the Western army. New armor had been commissioned for the soldiers, new weapons were forged and in a matter of three moon cycles, his battalions were being deployed.

Not that the South had spared a moment in their campaign as well. Reports of several battalions being sent to the borders between the South and the West had been delivered merely three moon cycles after the last document had been signed.

Opening the shoji screen, Sesshoumaru began to walk through the many hallways, taking a series of turns until he reached the main entrance to his Shiro. There, he watched as members of another battalion crossed through the gates of the palace, off to the battlefield. No doubt that they were anxious to leave the safety of the palace, and eager to enter the series of pending battles that was sure to come. This was the moment that they would prove once again why the Western army was known for its ferociousness in war, after all, it had been the West who had fought off demons in the past and had surfaced victorious in the end.

The remaining soldiers that stayed behind turned their attention to the entrance of the Shiro, were Sesshoumaru stood silently like a statue and bowed to their lord. He knew that those soldiers were waiting for their leader to command them, after all, they had been chosen as children, separated from their families at a tender age to begin training to become soldiers of the West. If their lord commanded them to head blindly to battle, they would obey without hesitation, all for the glory of their lands.

Descending the many steps graciously, almost as if he was floating towards the ground at the base of the stairs, and walking towards two of his most trusted generals, Sesshoumaru didn't stop until he reached the bowing generals. As soon as he stood in front of them, both generals straightened their backs to finally set their eyes on the young Western lord. "The battalions in the borders are ready and await your arrival, my lord", spoke Hideyoshi, one of the generals, while Satoshi, the second general held the reins of his horse.

He nodded to them and took the reins from Satoshi, and began walking after the first group of soldiers that had recently left the palace grounds, his generals and the remaining soldiers walking closely behind him. Today, he too would join the frontlines of battle. Mounting the white stallion, Sesshoumaru finally left off to the battlefield, where his men awaited his arrival to command them once again into the path of glory.

After a two day journey, Sesshoumaru finally arrived at the camp. As he made his way through the hordes of soldiers, he inspected the damage done by the war. So far, his generals had told him that the casualties among the Western army were less than those of the South, but never the less, every day that the battle continued claimed the lives of many men and those that survived another day were beginning to lose their strength.

Progress was being made slowly, and that diminished Sesshoumaru's patience. For six weeks the South had been trying to advance on the western borders. For six weeks the West had drove them away victoriously. But Sesshoumaru had other plans, he wanted the war to be over soon, not because of the casualties, not because of the expenses that the war had and not because his soldiers were beginning to tire, but because of his pride. If he succeeded in ending this war before spring came again, he would be the youngest lord to have expelled the enemy from his territory successfully in the shortest amount of time, only a year. That only gave him seven more moon cycles to achieve his goal. That was what truly fueled him, what drove him to devise his most brilliant strategies.

Once he entered his tent, he reunited with his generals once again to put into action his plans. The game was going well, but Sesshoumaru wanted it to be in favor of the West, so nothing could go wrong. And so, for the next weeks, Sesshoumaru headed to war fearlessly.

As the first rays of light illuminated the sky that morning, Sesshoumaru stood in front of his tent, admiring the red and orange hues in the sky. For some, it was a bad omen, but to him, it held a silent promise of victory. After all, the night before he received the most gratifying news that he had received in a long time… a soldier had spotted the Southern lord among the Southern army. If everything went according to his plans, today the West would deal the final blow and crush the defense of the South.

The only sound that reached is ears were that of his erratic beating heart and labored breathing. As he made his way through the dense canopy of the forest, Sesshoumaru suddenly felt as though he was drowning. A coughing fit suddenly hit him, and he braced himself against the nearest tree for support. He couldn't breathe, and when the spasms ended, he wiped his mouth and realized that he was choking on his own blood. Wiping the metallic liquid with his hand, he continued walking deeper into the immense forest.

He knew that he didn't have much time left. He was seriously wounded. Minor cuts and bruises adorned his alabaster skin, but what was surely to be the end of him was the massive wound in his chest, where barely minutes ago, the sword of the Southern lord had pierced through his armor and through his flesh, a wound that was seeping a torrential of blood behind him as he walked.

Suddenly, his legs could no longer support his weight, and he collapsed. Breathing was becoming more and more difficult and each weak breath that he took sent a great amount of pain through his entire being. Summoning the last strength that he had, he crawled to the nearest tree and turned so that his back lay against the rough wood of the tree.

His vision was becoming blurry with each passing second. His eyelids felt impossibly heavy. Suddenly, fatigue hit him and he could begin to see dark shadows obscuring his vision. Closing his eyes, he no longer was aware on the intense pain that was coursing through his battered body. His senses were no longer aware of the distant shouts of war, the ringing sound of swords colliding against each other, or even the gentle rustle of the leaves on the trees above his head.

Opening his eyes one last time before closing them again, Sesshoumaru let out a shaky breath through his thin lips as he watched as a particular shadow seemed to come closer towards him, before everything else went dark.


	3. The Maiden

Author's note: I don't own Inuyasha

Thanks again to all those who reviewed and waited for an update… I truly appreciate the good feedback that this story has received.

**Chapter 3:**

**The Maiden **

Struggling to regain consciousness, Sesshoumaru began a battle with his body and mind. Every part of him felt impossibly heavy and numb. A dull ache still clouded over him and he felt as though his body were on fire. Trying to open his eyes for the first time since he had fallen in the forest, he failed miserably and instead tried to become aware of his surroundings using his other senses.

The first thing that he realized was that he was lying in a flat and hard surface and that at the same time, something furry and soft was slightly cushioning and covering his body. Summoning his strength he tried to move his hands and found that he lacked self control over his limbs. His arms felt heavy and almost as if they were disconnected from his body, making it impossible for him to move. Trying to move again, this time his legs, he had the same results and instead decided to explore his surroundings with his other senses.

Inhaling as deeply as he could, he managed to catch the scent of humidity, earth, herbs and smoke. Silence filled his ears at first, but the he could faintly hear the sound of a crackling fire nearby, probably the source of the smoke that he had been able to scent in the atmosphere around him, but nothing else seemed to be alive inside his refuge. Putting together what he had been able to hear, smell and barely see, and considering the fact that his surroundings seemed to be obscured, he came to the conclusion that he was lying in the ground, covered by what he thought to be furs and probably inside his rescuer's home.

Finally after an indefinite time, he was able to contract the muscles of his arms and began to raise his hand when a searing and blinding pain tore through his chest and upper torso. That was when he remembered the reason why his body was betraying him in this moment:

Images bombarded his mind and then, he remembered that fateful day in the battlefield when he had been injured…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Flashback~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_As he had been running through the hordes of fighting men, cutting down all the enemy's soldiers that were on his way, he had created a path that would lead him to his ultimate target who was currently engaged in battle with a group of soldiers, the Southern lord. As soon as their eyes found each other, both lords began running in direction towards each other, murder in their minds._

_When they met, their swords spoke to each other in a loud clang that seemed to resonate throughout the battlefield. Suddenly everything faded away and the only though that crossed his mind was to kill his enemy Once again, their swords collided and in the middle of the battle, he had managed to deliver a powerful kick to the abdomen of his enemy, sending him backwards and giving him more momentum to slash his sword through his enemy. But the Southern lord had recovered quickly and had been able to block his attack. They continued charging against each other, occasionally punching and kicking each other and moving until they were fighting in the border of the forest._

_They continued fighting, running through the forest, madly chasing each other, no words whatsoever leaving their mouths. Pushing through the dense canopy, he had managed to catch up with his enemy and swinging once again his sword, he couldn't help but smile as he managed to injure the left leg of the Southern lord, partially incapacitating him and making it difficult for him to continue evading his attacks. _

"_For someone who claims to be more experienced in battle than a young lord, I must say that I find it rather disappointing that you keep running away from me", he had spoken in a calm tone. But his enemy merely huffed and stood in a defensive position in front of him._

_And then, it happened, so fast that he still found it hard to comprehend. As soon as he had raised his sword to charge at his enemy, The Southern lord had counterattacked, raising his sword and managing to penetrate through his armor and through his flesh and bone in his left pectoral. _

_The pain had been so immense that it made him falter and miss his intentional target. Instead, his sword hit the Southern lord in the articulation of the right arm and shoulder, almost severing his arm. _

_He fell on his knees, clutching his chest and watching as the Southern lord held his injured arm with the same pain filled expression that he was sure adorned his face at that moment. And then, the lord of the South turned and began running away, holding his shoulder in an effort to block the bleeding, leaving him behind to die._

_Somehow, he had managed to stand again and began walking back in the direction that he thought he had come from while battling the Southern lord. But as he walked, he became disoriented and that's when he realized the severity of his injury. He knew that he was bleeding too much, and that if he didn't receive medical attention soon, he would die._

_That's when breathing became difficult and he began coughing blood. After the coughing episode had ended, he had felt dizzy and lightheaded and as a result, his legs gave out because of the pain that he felt coursing through his body, the lack of oxygen and the hemorrhage that he was suffering from, and somehow he had managed to crawl to the nearest tree before passing out._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~End~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now that he remembered the reason of his current state, he tried once again to open his eyes. Managing to slightly open his eyes, he instantly regretted it as the room began to spin wildly around him. Closing his eyes again, he waited a little before opening them again for a second time. With a blurry vision, Sesshoumaru tried to make out his surroundings this time, but the only thing that he could differentiate was the burning blaze of a nearby fire.

Then he felt something cool being placed over his forehead. Slowly, turning his face to the side his eyes were able to follow an arm to the connecting body of his caretaker. It was almost as if his vision was covered by a haze, but never the less, he was finally able to find the face of his rescuer. He could discern a slender frame by his side, the frame of a woman, he thought. Slowly, tilting his head upwards, he tried to focus his eyes on her face, but the only thing that he could clearly discern were a pair of gentle dark brown eyes, before once again; sleep and exhaustion claimed him.

When he began to gain consciousness for the second time during his recovery, Sesshoumaru could hear gentle humming coming from somewhere inside his refuge. This time his eyelids seemed to not oppose to his will and he opened his eyes more easily and quickly than the first time when he had awoken. Trying to move once again, Sesshoumaru realized that the pain in his chest had significantly diminished into a lingering ache. Rising a hand to his chest, he came in contact with a cloth that seemed to be shielding his injury from the outside threats that could infect the wound. Running his long fingers over the bandage, he noticed that the bandages were dry, a sign that they has been recently changed.

His vision was clear and this time Sesshoumaru was able to see his surroundings. Moving his eyes from side to side, he followed a beam in the ceiling to a nearby wooden column and then to the floor. He was in a small hut, made entirely out of wood but with no wooden floor. He could see shelves in the walls that held a variety of plants, herbs and bases of different shapes and sizes.

Tilting his head to his side, he could the figure of a woman and the source of the gentle humming that had awoken him. Scrutinizing the shape of the woman that had tended to him during his recovery, he wondered her identity. Was she a woman of the South that once she realized who he was would tell his enemy of his condition, or was she a woman of the West? By the garment that she wore, a simple pink kimono with what appeared to be small black dots arranged in a pattern so that they resembled flowers and a dark pink obi, he knew she was probably a peasant. A yellow piece of cloth covered her head and hair entirely. Suddenly, the woman moved, and began rising from the spot where she was seated in front of the fire. As soon as she was standing, Sesshoumaru instantly closed his eyes and faked sleep.

Hearing her coming closer, Sesshoumaru stayed still waiting for her next move. He felt her kneel by his side and he almost jumped when he felt her touch his forehead once again. As the curiosity became too much for him, Sesshoumaru opened his hazel eyes to see for the first time the face of his rescuer, and as soon as his eyes found the face of the woman, his eyes instantly widened by what he saw.

Her skin was the color of porcelain; big brown eyes watched him with curiosity, framed by thick dark lashes. Beautiful plump lips the color and cheeks that had a slight pink blush in them adorned her face. But none of these striking beautiful features had sent him into a mild state of shock, not at all, but the markings that he saw in her face… a crescent moon, a purple crescent moon adorned her forehead, silver locks were concealed by the piece of cloth that covered her head, and two magenta stripes in both cheeks…

Slapping her hand away, he realized that her wrist was also adorned by the same stripes, reinforcing his discovery… The beautiful maiden that had rescued him and nursed him back to life was in reality a demon and Sesshoumaru couldn't help but feel angered and disgusted by this fact.


	4. A Blind Man

Author's note: I do not own it.

First, let me thank all those wonderful readers who reviewed my story, I greatly appreciate everything said. Second, I made some changes to the previous chapter because I forgot that my intentions were to have Rin have silver hair, but nothing major was changed.

**Chapter 4:**

**A Blind Man**

_**A man that makes himself blind does not acknowledge the beauty that is before him**_

With eyes filled with repulsion and distrust, he watched her, the silent maiden that in his delirium he had envisioned as a beautiful celestial maiden. But now that he had discovered her true identity, he no longer felt that he could trust himself to her care. Repulsion and anger, those were the two emotions that he currently felt.

Sitting up and trying to make the effort of kneeling and lifting himself from the makeshift bed of furs, he was suddenly reminded of his injuries by the stinging pain on his chest and the ache of his protesting limbs, and as soon as he had barely risen a couple of inches from the pile of furs, he collapsed, a grunt escaping through his tightly clenched lips, when his body lost its fruitless battle against his injuries and gravity.

Instantly the demon maiden inched herself closer to him, wrapping a gentle hand around his bicep and supporting him. As soon as he felt her warm and soft hand touching him, rage filled his mind and losing his indifferent composure, he slapped her hand away forcefully. Instantly, his eyes landed on a clay bowl that he was sure she had placed near him when she knelt beside him and seized it, smashing the frail piece of clay against the hard surface of the floor. Instantly the bowl shattered against the brutal force of the impact, sending shards everywhere, and forcing the woman before him to shield her face with her forearm.

A gasp escaped through her lips when she felt something sharp and cold against her throat, and lowering her arm, she stared into the cold and angry eyes of the man that she had been caring for.

"I should kill you, you disgusting vermin, for daring to touch me" he told her, in a raspy voice.

It was fury what fueled his irrational actions, he realized. But the mere thought that one such as him, Sesshoumaru, descendant of a long bloodline of warlords, proud and strong, had been reduced to nothing more than a crippled man, a man that owed his life to a demon… It was truly disgusting.

It was when the woman before him had slowly backed away from him and left the hut that he allowed himself to slowly lay against the softness of the furs under him.

When he had finally calmed down, he mentally winced, realizing, much to his displeasure, that he had made a fool of himself.

"_What kind of warlord uses a weak shard from a simple clay bowl to try to kill a demon?"_ he thought. But trying to convince himself that it was the statement that he made, not the action itself, he adjusted his position on the piles of furs and made himself comfortable. He was a man of tactics, and right now, his plan was to recover as soon as possible so that he would be able to leave the presence of the demon that was currently guarding him.

Every day that he would wake up, he would discover that that the demon woman had touched him while he slept, cleaning his wound and bandaging them with clean linens. That's when he began to suspect that she was putting some kind of narcotic into his food to render him helpless and then she would proceed to treat his wounds without hearing his threats and curses. And that's when he chose not to eat any food that she would bring him, stating,

"I do not eat food from a demon"

Every time, she would bring him something different to eat, from a roasted bird of some kind with wild mushrooms to grilled fish with some berries, and every time he would ungratefully insult her or simply threaten her, but she simply would smile, and turn away, leaving him alone to do as he pleased, the food that she brought within his reach. But after two days of refusing to eat anything that she would bring him, he succumbed to his basic need, after all, he was only human, and humans need nourishment to recover, since he still was not strong enough to search for his own food.

"_I will eat, only to recover my strength"_ he told himself, _"so that I will be able to leave this pit as soon as possible and return to my home."_

So he let her cleanse his wound and apply strange mixtures of herbs on them. He let her bring him food, promising himself that as soon as he was able to leave, he would do so without looking back, without remorse.

After two more days he was able to stand and walk, although his legs were sore and he couldn't raise his arms all the way. Searching through the humble hut, he found his belongings beside the shelf that held many herbs and potions that he had noticed the first day that he had awoken from his slumber. Every piece of clothing has been washed to remove every blood stain and he had to admit that she had done a great job cleaning and stitching up the tears that were on his clothing. So he dressed up in his trademark white haori and hakama, with the yellow sash around his waist and secured his sword on his belt, leaving behind the remains of his obliterated armor, it was too heavy for his recovering body to carry anyways, and slowly made his way through the shoji screen that separated the hut from the outside environment.

As soon as he had stepped outside the hut, he was assaulted with the blinding warm light of the early morning sun. Closing his eyes momentarily, to slowly adjust to the blinding but welcome light, he indulged himself with the scents and sounds of the surrounding nature.

Feeling the warm rays of the sun warm his body, he was suddenly interrupted from his peaceful moment when he heard soft footsteps halting behind him. He didn't have to turn, he reminded himself, even though that woman had saved him, cleaned his wounds, brought him food, he was still above her, he reminded himself, and thus, he had no need to acknowledge her presence, so he continued with his eyes closed, facing the warming light of the early morning.

"Are you leaving?"

It was the first time that he had heard her speak. Instantly his hazel eyes opened and he began feeling a strange sensation take residence on his chest. The sound of her voice was enough to momentarily make him forget that the origin of such a melodious voice was a demon. Her voice was gentle, feminine, beautiful and just… perfect.

"_Stop this foolishness, this woman is a demon. There is no honor in finding pleasing qualities in one such as her"_

Not trusting his voice at that moment, he merely chose to reply her with merely a "Hn".

"If no words of gratefulness will come from you, please, at least take these with you," she spoke once again, making the strange tightness in his chest intensify with each word. He heard her take a couple of more steps closer to him and felt her place something behind his feet, and then heard her as she retreated to the security of her home.

After a couple of seconds had passed since the woman had silently retreated, he slowly turned around to inspect what she had left behind. A small bag, made from dark leather, was in the floor. Bending down, he retrieved the bag and opened it to reveal two pieces of bread and a variety of nuts, wild mushrooms and berries, and in a small sack inside the bag, he found a mixture of herbs that he recognized to be those that she had been applying to his wounds.

Securing the leather bag to his waist, he turned and began walking towards the forest, never looking back.


End file.
